Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality Executive Mayor, Babalwa Lobishe, has commended the appointment of two senior managers who have been placed in acting roles for the next six months.
"We welcome these appointments. We will hit the ground running to fast-track service delivery issues, prioritise the flood related infrastructure interventions in Kariega and other affected areas,” Lobishe said of the appointments in the Eastern Cape based municipality.
This as on Tuesday, the MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA), Zolile Williams confirmed the appointment of Ted Pillay as the Acting City Manager and Lonwabo Ngoqo as the acting Chief Operating Officer (COO).
These appointments materialise following a request by the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality Council and the Executive Mayor, for a section 154 intervention through COGTA and the MEC by appointing an Acting City Manager and a COO.
The appointments come after a request from the municipality’s council and Executive Mayor for a Section 154 intervention through COGTA, aimed at strengthening the municipality's administrative and governance capacity.
Section 154 of the South African Constitution requires the national and provincial governments to support and strengthen the capacity of municipalities to perform their functions.
Speaking at a recent press conference, Lobishe said the appointments come at a time when the municipality is working around the clock to accelerate service delivery.
"We thank MEC Williams for the interventions to address service delivery challenges. We are looking forward to work with this team of experienced senior officials,” Lobishe said.
On the status of the current City Manager, Mayor Lobishe confirmed that negotiations are ongoing with Dr. Noxolo Nqwazi, who is currently on suspension, regarding the terms of her contract termination.
The municipality aims to the resolve the matter with the incumbent City Manager over the next six months.
The MEC said the interventions are based on the request that the Council has made for the specific appointments.
The acting appointments took effect from 1 April 2025.
– SAnews.gov.za
